The first time I caught wind of Major League Baseball and steroids was back in 2009 when four MLB stars got caught up in a performance-enhancing drug controversy.

Some form of it still exists four years later, and I find myself walking back through the throes of time as Alex Rodriguez may face another drug-related league punishment.

His Biogenesis treatment was possibly illegal. But if MLB can’t catch him there, they’re going after him for a collective bargaining agreement violation.

It doesn’t look like it will end well either way.

I was part of the Journalism and Sports Program at Morehouse College in 2009, when A-Rod admitted to steroid use. I was kinda on his side then, concluding he made a mistake. But if he has in fact kept “juicing” in some form, I would say he’s tainted his career.

We were asked to write our thoughts on it, and here’s what I came up with (an unpublished assignment I dug up from my sports treasure):

Whatever happened to hard work?

Athletes who consume steroids do so to gain muscle. They want to be bigger and faster and stronger, understandably. Training can lead to the same results.

I guess that day and age of hard work has flown out of the window, and the so-called “microwave generation” didn’t start with us ‘80s babies: Alex Rodriguez (1975), Barry Bonds (1964), Roger Clemens (1962) and Miguel Tejada (1974). Those were all the guys somewhat involved in the MLB steroids-blanketed controversy back then.

Let’s take Rodriguez for instance, because he has in fact confessed (finally) to his usage of performance-enhancing drugs while he played for the Texas Rangers from 2001-03. Although MLB’s steroid policy was not implemented until 2005, they guy still partook in a deliberate unfair advantage.

All-star shortstop Tejada pleaded guilty to his in February (2009). He also admitted to buying what he believed to be a “human growth hormone.”

What should happen to them along with the rest of the 104 major leaguers who tested positive this year? Of course, they were giving the fans stellar performances that racked up matching statistics. While A-Rod played shortstop for the Rangers in 2011, his batting average was the highest on the team.

I thought steroids increased performance, because in 2003 it was lower.

“When you start taking an artificial hormone,” said George Gieger, a sports medicine trainer, “your body stops creating it naturally.”

Maybe that explained the decrease.

However, on another note: Leave A-Rod alone. It was before the rule, and at least he admitted his fault. There are 103 others who are accountable, too. I think he made a mistake; stop castigating him.

It’s not as if they aren’t punishing themselves enough by allowing fake hormones to stream through their bodies. The disadvantages can range from prominent breasts to baldness, infertility … cancer or even death.

Page 2 of 2 - But back to the players’ punishment — of course they should be penalized. Of course they should be suspended. And of course their Hall of Fame chances should be greatly reduced. Cheaters never prosper, and that shouldn’t be altered because some of these guys are superstars.

“If you’re a coach and your guy is putting up numbers,” Geiger said, “and your guys are winning games, are you really going to say something about it?” He believes that’s the reason why so many people turn their heads.

I think it’s an issue that shouldn’t go disregarded, and it definitely shouldn’t go without discipline.

Also, look at how many children look up to these guys.

MLB is taking a stand to minimize the shortcuts. It’s how you lose originality and become manufactured, which is a way no one wants to see athletes play. It takes away from the genuine momentum that fans yearn to see.

PEDs are banned for a reason and should be punished accordingly.

It should be pretty simple in the light of million-dollar contracts. If you want to be bigger and faster and stronger — work for it.

Jessika Morgan can be reached at 252-559-1078 and Jessika.Morgan@Kinston.com. Follow her on Twitter @JessikaMorgan.